Obturator for flexible shafts.



- No. 820,780. PATENTED MAY 15, 1906.

E. GUY.

.OBTURATOR FDR FLEXIBLE SHAFTS,

APPLICATION FILED JAN.11. 1906.

(mien stares ALBERT E. GUY, OF TRENTON, NEW J'Eltlihlfi'.

QBTUWELTUW FQl l FMEKHFELE @llAFl'hB.

No. see, 780..

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT E. GUY, a citi- Len of the United States, residing at Trenton, 1n the county of Mercer and State of New Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Obturators for Flexible Shafts, of which the following is a specificatlon.

The invention relates to rotary flexible shafts such as are employed in high-speed turbines to support the rotating member and to transmit power therefrom, and more partlcularly to means for roducin a tight joint between said shalt anrl a wall through which it extends irrespective of the deflections of said shaft due to the lack of balance of the rotating body supported by said shaft. A device of this Kind is set forth in United States Patent No. 803,7 55, granted to me Nove1nto exhibit the mode of connecting the semicircular p eces of which the ring is construct-- ed. Fig. 3 1s amenlarged SGCtlOIl ot a part of the obturator sleeve and ring, showing more ,A

clearly the curvatures at the joint between ring and sleeve.

Similar numbers of reference indicate like parts.

1 is a head of the casing in which a turbine- Wheel may be inclosed, having a central open ing 2. 3 is the flexible shall: carry ig' id wheel.

4- is a tube entering the opening 22 and having a flange bearing, on the c. ing; 1. The outer end of tube 1 is threaded. to reccivean annular bonnet 5. On the interior of said tube is formed a flange 6, having a face 7 parallel to the inner face of bonnet 5. On. the shaft 3 is a sleeve 8, made in two parts, con nected hy helical spring-bands 9, which hands are received in grooves in said sleeve parts. On said sleeve are two flanges 10 11, the inner faces of which are portions of spherical sur- Specification of Letters Patent.

I w Application filed January 11,

'ic'atenteti may 1 5, 1 906.

1906. Serial No. 295,655-

faces struck with equal radii iron'i points, as A B, lying in the axis of shaft 3. The diameter oi the flange 11 is less than the diameter of the circular space bounded by the flange (3 as the diameter of flange 10 is less than the diameter of the circular space hounded by the'inner edge of the lace-wall oi bonnet 5. Seated in the channel formed between said flanges l0 1] and having its proximate faces of corresponding curvature is the ohturator ring 12. Said ring is made, preferably, in two parts, having transverse webs 13 at their ends, said webs being connected, by bolts 14-. The relation, therefore, of each face oi the ring to the flange 10 or ii, against which it may bear, is that of a halhandsocket'joint; the ring supplying the socket and the flanges 10 -11, in egllt'ect,v the ball. reason ol" this construction and of the further fact that there is clearance .5 around the exterior of the ring the ring will always accommodate itself to"any deflection of the shaft 3, while making a tight joint with one or the other flange. If there be vacumn in the turbine casing, the air-pressure holds the ring tightly against flange 6 and slceve-llange 11. ll, on the other hand, there be p :ssure above at :n'iosphere in the 'turbinl'i-casing, said pressure holds the ringagainst honnet 7 and. sleevellang e l (l.

ll find in practice th there may be slight variations ol pressure on the ring not stiflicient to force it posi lively into one definite position or the other. To avoid the resulting movement ol. the ring; and possible slight leakage, if pri'rvido means lor hnlding one flange of the slee e normally against the ring by a spring-pm sure su'llii-ioiit to take up said slight variatiiuis. lfiast on the tiibeat is a bracket 16, ich I also utilize for supporting the oil-supply cupll, carriedhy the nut lit. staid nut sort to clamp on bracket 16 two depending springeirms 19, which extend on each side oi. .-e sleeve 8 and have bent ends engaging with pins 20 on said sleeve. I lhise springs hold. the parts, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3, with a normal resilient spring-prcssure, which prevents separation. ol said. parts under the slight variatirms of pneumatic preso re above noted.

I claimi. In cornl'iinationwith tl'iecasingand [lexible supportingpshalt of an olmlic-fluid tin" bine-whoel, an obturator-riilg freely movable tiirbine-Wlicel.

'by ring end having flanges with con- *YEI'GUQS ooiistriicted to fit 111 said ring corrill on enmil recess in said casing and a bell end-socket joint betweeiissid slisft on sei-i, 1 ring. c 2. In combination with the casing and the flexible supporting-shaft of an elsstic-iluid an obturetor-ring surrounding said shaft and movable in an annular recess in a well of said casing, and e bell-end-soclret joint lmtween said shell; and said ring.

The combinetiori of a well having an opening and an em? lar recess in the iieripherel edge surrounding said openi 11g, ring loosely received in seid recess, a fissile shaft, and sleeve on said shaft surrounded by said ring; the said ring; leveling constructed toforin one member and the seid being coir struotcd to form the other e oer.

4. 111 combination with tufoinwwlreel casing and e flexible shaft for said wheel, in obtz retor-ring loose received in an annular recess in said casing and :1 on said shaft surrounded by said ring; the said ring beirw constructed to form one member and the seio sleeve being constructed to form the other member of e beliend-seckeia oint.

5. In combination with the flexible shaft and the casing of an elestiediuid turbine, srmuler recess in a well of said casing ED110811? T le with said shaft, loose ring izi'seid of ess diameter and idth than. sa d recess, and having concevitics in its outer. ees

s fixed SlE'GYG 011 said shaft and inolosed cevities.

6. in combination with the flexible shaft and thecosmg of on lfiStlQ-fidlfi turbine, an

slmuler recess in a w ll of said turbine concentric d shaft, esleeve 011 said shaft hevir g s circumf ren tiel groove with convex sides, end a loose ring in said groove lmving concave feces shaped toconiorm to said sidesth being oleerezce-spece between. the o-ettom of seed recess and ring and. be"

there tween tlie inner circumferential periphery of t bou: 'ngwvells of said recess snd'seid sleeve. 1

7. In combination with the flexible shaft end t e casing of an elastic-fluid turbine, a

and disposed respectively on opposite sides" ofs wid ring there being e clearencespece between tne bottom of said recessend said ring and between the inner circumfereiitisl peripliei of the bounding-Wells of seid recess and said sleeve S, in col motion with the flexible shaft and thefcesing of an elastic-fluid turbine, a

tube supported on said casing oon'imuniceting with the interior thereof and iiiclosing said shaft, on iiiteriisiflIDP'G on said tube, an

annular bonnet on the end of said tube ham ing its inner face parallel to eieoe of said tube filer s said shaft having flanges, the said flanges having their opposing'ieoes shaped to the onnuli' of spheres struck on equal radii iroirl points lying in the axis of said shaft, and :1 loose ring surrounding said sleeve having its outer feces shaped to 001'187' spend to sold flange-feces --e.nd lyingbetween said been said internal tube-flange; h s cleerence spa-ee between the oircumlerentiel periphery of said ring and said tube and between. said sleeve-flanges and the inner circumferential periphery of'seid annular bonnet and said 'tube'flenge.

In. testimony whereof I lieve slliXed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT E. our.

Witi'iesses:

WM. H. SisesmN,

PARK BENJAMIN, Jr. 

